Gibb (right) said: “I don’t think there’s much focus on social work [in the agencies]; there’s much more focus on social care and the taskforce has been one of the few forums in which we can talk about social work as a profession in its own right.”

She said its successful call – questioned by the GSCC – for the government to establish a separate code of practice for social workers in England, as opposed to all social care staff, was similarly motivated.

“There’s strong support for that recognition,” she said. “We tend to use social work and social care in an interchangeable way, which doesn’t help.”

Meanwhile, Peter Beresford (right), chair of service user organisation Shaping Our Lives, has written to Gibb calling for user involvement in the taskforce to be “significantly strengthened”.

The taskforce includes Maxine Wrigley, co-ordinator of care leaver-led organisation A National Voice, and Anne Beales, who has used mental health services and is director of user involvement at the charity Together.

However, Beresford pointed out that there was no member from an organisation representing adult service users.

He pointed to government commitments to increase the influence of user-led organisations in every area, and added: “After all, involving service users as a key stakeholder and improving services for them lies at the heart of the work of the taskforce.”